executive view

Demag Ergotech Offers One-Stop Customer Service in Italy

By Ing. Jens Löwe, Project Engineer, Demag Ergotech Italia

Demag Ergotech GmbH manufactures injection molding machines under the well-known brand name Ergotech. Ergotech machines are used in many industries worldwide to produce thermoplastic, elastomer and thermoset products. Tortona, Italy-based Demag Ergotech Italia has been in operation for eight years with its primary focus on serving Italian manufacturers. We have a fully established local office with sales and after-sales departments for Italian customers. The recently established Special Projects department addresses complex projects that typically required attention and expertise from Demag operations in Germany. Companies with special needs and/or complex projects worked with Demag in Germany - a time-consuming process that was not ideal for best practices. By establishing a local presence, we have eliminated many of the obstacles such as time, travel and language differences. Our close proximity to customers is particularly beneficial in addressing complex molding projects and providing ongoing, on-site assistance. Since establishing a local special project department, we are much better suited to addressing our Italian customers directly.

This decision was very important because Demag Ergotech Italia is growing in an overall depressed European market. Growth is especially apparent in applications with automation. In light of this sales opportunity, the company offers some unique services that help Italian manufacturers become much more productive. In this sense, Demag Ergotech Italia is much more than an equipment supplier in Italy. Our Italian customers realize that if they buy a whole injection molding system with all the associated automation equipment from one source, they can operate much more efficiently versus collecting all the equipment from several suppliers. Instead, Demag Ergotech Italia can secure whatever types of machines a customer needs, install them and provide post-installation services associated with start-up procedures. This is definitely a new and innovative approach to servicing Italian manufacturers.

At the onset of meeting with a prospective customer, we evaluate the organization's manufacturing needs and determine the best and most cost-effective strategies. We try to understand each customer's operations - what is working well and where there are problems or inconsistencies. Then, we determine the best solutions in terms of the right equipment. Demag Ergotech Italia installs the equipment and assists with training and post-installation assistance. Other services can be provided as well, such as on-going machine maintenance and monitoring or additional resources for machine operation. So far, this new business model is working well.

Recently, we displayed our office and showroom because of our organization's growth in Italy. We recently held a very successful high-tech exposition at this site for customers and prospects. The company demonstrated its equipment to the nearly 200 attendees. One piece of equipment was a two-component mold with a middle turning plate for a two-material molding process. Another application on display was a six-axis robot developed by ABB with a 100 percent optical control application provided by a local Italian supplier. Moldflow applications were installed in this high tech display and also demonstrated during the two-day event. We also demonstrated a molding machine capable of handling a silicon application in which the relatively cool silicon material outside the mold must be heated to a high temperature once it enters the cavity. The exposition was a way for the company to highlight its goods and services to a broad audience. We want Italian manufacturers to know that we are a high-tech company.

We view ourselves as being able to offer a full range of services for our customers. For prospective customers, we present the company as not just a machine manufacturer for the plastic injection mold business, but one that offers services that we can execute here at Demag Ergotech Italia. Some customers may not need to invest in the equipment and our onsite capabilities can fulfill their needs.

Representative of the types of services provided, Demag Ergotech Italia recently launched its DR-300 Colibri robot as one of its newest pieces of equipment to help customers operate more efficiently. This is an application in which the robot is totally integrated into the machine. The advantage compared to traditional robotic applications that include an interface that passes between the molding machine and the robot, is that the operators can monitor the device and the machine from a single control. The Colibri is small, requiring minimum floor space. Quality control information is collected and can be stored on one single diskette, together with the molding machine data. It's a very efficient system.